Gift cards, the new kid currency

AS kids' lives get carved up with even more activities and interests, it can be really hard for loved ones to keep up and give gifts that are appreciated. So it's not surprising that a new NPD study looking at how kids use gift cards found that 60% of them had received one in the few months leading up to the late February online poll, especially since that time frame coincided with Christmas.

AS kids’ lives get carved up with even more activities and interests, it can be really hard for loved ones to keep up and give gifts that are appreciated. So it’s not surprising that a new NPD study looking at how kids use gift cards found that 60% of them had received one in the few months leading up to the late February online poll, especially since that time frame coincided with Christmas.

But interestingly, the bulk of kids (close to 58%) went into stores without a concrete plan for spending the credit amount on the cards, instead choosing to purchase on impulse. According to the study, which surveyed mothers of kids ages two to 14, toys and board games benefit the most from kid gift card buys, followed by food service outfits. Older kids in the nine to 14 bracket are keener to purchase video games and clothing with their cards, and the average price spent on kids gift cards is US$44.

Boys are more likely to receive an electronic store gift card, while girls are more likely to receive a card for a department, clothing or book store. Though 96% of purchases across all ages took place in a physical retail outlet, NPD analyst Anita Frazier says the tendency to redeem gift cards online increases with age. Web retailers were most popular with 13- to 14-year-olds.

Frazier says grandparents and aunts & uncles are heavy buyers of gift cards for kids, while parents still tend to purchase physical gifts.